The Department of Energy and Climate Change predicts approximately 10% of annual emissions cuts between now and 2020 will be achieved through greater efficiencies in workplaces. And by 2050, offices, factories, schools and hospitals will have to reduce emissions to almost zero.
As a result, the Government said yesterday, jobs and business opportunities will be created in new sectors outside the energy sector to support businesses to be more energy efficient.
Energy and climate change secretary Ed Miliband said: "This is a transition plan for Britain, a route map to 2020, with carbon savings expected across every sector and a carbon budget assigned to every government department alongside its financial budget.
"Our plan will strengthen our energy security, it seeks to be fair to the most vulnerable, it seizes industrial opportunity and it rises to the moral challenge of climate change.
"In five months, the world must come together at Copenhagen and follow through on the commitment of world leaders last week to stop dangerous climate change. Today we have shown how Britain will play its part."
Business secretary Peter Mandelson said: "The strategies we are launching today outline the Government's vision for achieving a low carbon future for the UK, reshaping the way we live and work in every element of our lives. This is a challenge that every economy is facing, and we are determined that by setting clear policy now Britain positions itself to benefit both economically and environmentally from the transition.
"The UK is already the sixth largest economy for low carbon goods and services, globally worth £3 trillion and growing, and today the Government is outlining how its support for the economy will ensure our businesses and our workforce continue to lead the way. We must combine the dynamism of the private sector with a strategic role for Government to deliver the benefits of innovation, growth and job creation in the UK."
Commenting on the report, The CMI’s chief executive, Ruth Spellman, added: Making green management ‘business as usual’ is a key challenge facing the profession today. It’s frustrating that the majority of managers recognise this but are being held back, either because of a lack of leadership commitment, complicated regulations, or inadequate resources. We hope the recommendations in this report will give managers the tools they need stop paying lip-service to green issues and start taking action.
